Ireland Crypto Tax 2026: CGT, Filing Dates and the Four-Week Question

Irish Revenue says there are no special tax rules for crypto-assets. Most private investment disposals therefore fall within ordinary Capital Gains Tax, while a genuine trade is taxed as income. Revenue’s January 2026 crypto manual is clear on this framework but does not say that the share-specific four-week rule automatically applies to crypto—a crucial limit for tax software and taxpayers.

Ireland has no crypto-specific tax regime

Revenue’s Tax and Duty Manual Part 02-01-03, reviewed in January 2026, states that the sale, transfer or redemption of crypto-assets is most likely a disposal for Capital Gains Tax unless the facts show that a trade of dealing in crypto-assets is carried on. Calling an exchange action a “trade” does not create tax trading status. Organisation, repetition, commercial method, intention and the wider badges of trade must be considered together.

A crypto-to-crypto exchange, purchase of goods with crypto, gift or sale may be a disposal even when no euros enter a bank account. Moving assets between wallets owned by the same person is not in itself a change of ownership, but wallet evidence is needed to distinguish that movement from a transfer to another person.

CGT is generally 33% of the chargeable gain

For a private investor, the starting point is proceeds less acquisition cost and allowable transaction expenses. Revenue requires the result to be calculated separately for each asset on a disposal-by-disposal basis. The current standard CGT rate for most gains is 33%. It is the gain, not gross proceeds, that is taxed.

Allowable capital losses normally reduce chargeable gains in the same period. An unused balance can generally be carried forward against later chargeable gains. Each individual also has an annual personal exemption of €1,270. A report built only from crypto data should not silently apply all personal losses or the exemption as if no other capital disposals existed; it should show the pre-relief result and a separate reconciliation.

• Keep the original euro market value for every disposal and receipt.
• Include acquisition and disposal costs only where legally allowable and evidenced.
• Do not offset an income loss against a capital gain without a rule permitting it.
• Distinguish current-year losses from carried-forward losses.

Payment comes before the annual return

Ireland divides CGT payment into two periods. CGT on disposals from 1 January through 30 November is generally payable by 15 December of the same year. CGT on disposals during December is generally payable by 31 January of the following year. The return reporting the disposal is then due by 31 October of the following year, with Revenue’s online arrangements potentially providing a later ROS date.

A person who is not otherwise required to submit an Income Tax return can use Form CG1. A self-assessed taxpayer generally reports through Form 11. The reporting route depends on filing status, so tax software should prepare a CGT working paper rather than claim that one form is universally correct.

Do not automatically apply the share four-week rule to crypto

The old version of this article asserted that section 581 TCA 1997’s four-week share-identification and loss restriction automatically overrides FIFO for fungible crypto. That was too definite. Revenue’s official notes describe section 581 as applying to shares and securities of the same class. Revenue’s January 2026 crypto manual explains crypto disposals and losses but does not extend that section to crypto-assets or prescribe a universal crypto lot-identification method.

This matters because an unsupported four-week override can materially change cost basis and ring-fence losses. A report should therefore not apply section 581 to coins merely because they are fungible. If a token is itself a security or the taxpayer’s arrangement has legally relevant security characteristics, the position needs instrument-specific advice. Otherwise, the report should state its identification method and treat any four-week adjustment as an expressly confirmed option, not a hidden default.

Revenue’s share guidance remains relevant as a warning against copying labels across asset classes: it matches recent acquisitions and restricts a loss after a repurchase within four weeks, but that official page concerns shares. The cautious answer is not “the rule never applies to any token”; it is that no automatic application to every crypto-asset is established by the published crypto guidance.

Staking, mining, DeFi and derivatives

The tax result follows the facts and existing legislation. A reward may be income when received and establish a cost for a later disposal; a genuine business can have trading income and expenses. Revenue’s manual does not provide a single universal classification for every staking, airdrop or DeFi contract, so economic rights, services and control must be documented.

For derivatives, a realised contract profit or loss must be kept separate from opening events, snapshots, margin movements and funding. Revenue states that a crypto-asset contract outside trading profits can fall under CGT, while a contract within a business follows trading rules. The underlying coin’s tax treatment does not by itself decide the derivative contract. Our DeFi guide and data-quality guide cover the supporting records.

Record keeping and an audit-ready Irish report

Revenue requires relevant records to be retained for six years, including records held in wallets or devices. A defensible report retains raw exchange statements, wallet addresses, transaction IDs, euro valuation source, timestamps, fees and classification decisions. It should never replace a missing value with zero; the position should remain “not calculable” until supported.

1. Confirm residence, domicile and whether remittance-basis questions arise.
2. Select investment, trading or company profile from actual facts.
3. Reconcile internal transfers and missing opening balances.
4. Calculate each disposal in euro using a reasonable, consistent valuation source.
5. Separate capital gains, income, derivative contracts and review items.
6. Split CGT by the two payment periods and prepare the correct return support.
7. Document the lot-identification method without an unconfirmed crypto four-week override.

For neighbouring comparisons, see our UK crypto guide and Germany guide in English. Their pooling and holding-period rules must not be imported into an Irish calculation.

Frequently asked questions

Official sources

• Revenue: Taxation of Crypto-Asset Transactions, reviewed January 2026
• Revenue: Capital Gains Tax on disposal of an asset
• Revenue: TCA Part 19 notes, including section 581
• Revenue: selling or disposing of shares

Reviewed 1 September 2026. This guide is general information and not Irish tax advice.

Disclaimer: This article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute tax advice. For individual tax advice, consult a licensed tax professional.